A new episode of the series, Cristiano Ronaldo's anger at his position as a substitute in Manchester United, casts a shadow over the expected summit against Chelsea on Saturday in the 13th round of the English Premier League.

On the other hand, Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunez pays tribute to coach Jurgen Klopp's faith in him in Liverpool, while Tottenham is still struggling to prove itself among the elite Premier League teams.

The latest episodes of Ronaldo's rebellion came in the last minutes of United's 2-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur, when he left the bench in the last minute of the match to the dressing room while the match was still going on.

In response to Ronaldo's strange behavior, the club's decision was strict this time by announcing Thursday that he was excluded from the list that will travel to London to face Chelsea on Saturday.

Dutch coach Eric Ten Hag confirmed on Friday what the newspapers had raised that the player refused to enter as a substitute in the last minutes.

And Ten Hag answered, during the press conference, in response to a question about whether the player really refused to enter, by saying, "Yes, what happened in the conversation is between me and Cristiano. The club's statement is also clear, I think," stressing at the same time that Ronaldo "remains an important player." in the team."

Ronaldo and other players left Old Trafford before the end of the friendly match against Spain's Rayo Vallecano before the start of the season last July.

In response to a question about how he handled matters, Ten Hag said, “I am the coach, I am responsible for a sports culture here and I must set standards and values ​​​​and must control them,” adding, “After the match against Rayo Vallecano, I said that what happened was unacceptable, but it is (Ronaldo). He was not alone (who left)."

"But this is the second time and there must be consequences. That's what we did. We will miss him tomorrow, this is a loss for us and the team. But I think that is important for the behavior and mentality of the group."

Ronaldo's tantrum was not the first this season, after his attempt to leave the team in the summer failed because he wanted to compete with a club in the Champions League.

Ronaldo's apology

Hours after announcing his club, Ronaldo appeared to offer a veiled apology via an Instagram post that read, "I've always tried to set an example for the young people who have grown up in all the teams I've represented. Unfortunately. It's not always possible and sometimes we get dragged into the heat of the moment."

"Right now, I just feel I have to keep working hard at Carrington (United training centre), support my team-mates and be ready for everything in any game. Giving in to pressure is not an option. It was never an option. This is Manchester United and we have to stay united. Soon we will be." together again."

Several reports indicated that United will try to sell Ronaldo, who scored two goals in 12 games this season in various competitions, in the winter transfer market in early 2023.

The "Red Devils" team occupies fifth place in the league, one point behind Chelsea, fourth, and has managed to win two games against one draw since falling 6-3 against Manchester City.

As for Chelsea, despite being satisfied with a goalless draw in its last match with Brentford, it came after a series of 4 victories in a row in the league.

Nunez salutes Liverpool

On the other hand, unlike Ronaldo, Uruguayan Darwin Nunez appears to have found his form in time for Liverpool after a floundering start.

Having scored a goal in the opening round, he was sent off in his first game at Anfield in the league against Crystal Palace (second round) and did not find his way to the net in the next five matches, which tempered comparisons with Manchester City's Norwegian striker Erling Haaland, after he was the title The conflict between them after their arrival in England during the summer.

But with Portuguese strikers Diogo Jota, who will miss the World Cup in Qatar, and Colombian Luis Diaz, Klopp needed to show Nunez after the club paid 64 million pounds (about 71 million dollars) to join him from Benfica.

The 23-year-old rose to the challenge, scoring the only goal in the victory over West Ham on Wednesday, bringing his tally to 5 goals with the team this season, 3 of them in the last four matches.

"It's very important," Klopp said. "He scored some goals in his last matches. He arrived ready but with the numbers now, things are better."

With the victory over West Ham, which came in the wake of the victory over Manchester City with the goal of the Egyptian Mohamed Salah, Liverpool, seventh in the league with 16 points, has won two consecutive wins for only the second time this season and heads to the bottom Nottingham Forest on Saturday to try to approach fourth place and take advantage of the Chelsea summit - United.

Arsenal and strengthen the lead

In the other scene, Arsenal appears to be a candidate to achieve its fifth consecutive victory in the league and consolidate its lead when it comes to Southampton on Sunday.

And he enters the confrontation after he reached the second round of the European League "European League" on Thursday, by defeating its guest, Eindhoven, with a single goal by the Swiss Granit Xhaka, two rounds before the end of the first round.

The London club has won 13 of 14 matches this season in all competitions, and its only loss was against Manchester United in the league.

As for Manchester City, 4 points behind Arsenal in second place, it hopes to recover from the first loss of the season against Liverpool, when it hosts Brighton on Saturday.

Tottenham suffers in front of adults

Having fallen twice against United, it would have been a resounding loss had it not been for the brilliance of French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, Tottenham are still struggling to silence critics who question their disappointing results against the leading teams.

The loss at Old Trafford came after it fell against Arsenal 1-3 in the north London derby and needed a controversial goal from Harry Kane in overtime to get out with a 2-2 draw against Chelsea this season.

This excluded him from analysts in the title race, despite his current third place.

"It is too early to analyze because I know you will say Chelsea, Arsenal and now Manchester United, but we also have to see when they come to our stadium what it will be like. But yes, it is frustrating to lose a difficult match," Lloris said before the match against in-form sixth-placed Newcastle on Sunday. .